No Go Chicago!

Waiting is not my virtue. I'd rather drive the long way around than sit at a stoplight in commuter traffic. I want to move forward. Just sitting is torturous.

So it was in this picture as we inched our way down the O'Hare Airport tarmac waiting and waiting and waiting to take off.

But back up a bit: First, we'd missed our connection to Seattle the day before. Half the world missed their connections, or so it seemed since the Chicago airport was busier than a wasp's nest during breeding season. Lines were the norm. Lines for the bathroom. Lines for the "red phones" where we were instructed to "rebook" our flight. Lines at the agent booths. Lines at the hotel kiosk. Lines for the taxi. Lines, lines, lines, and even more lines.

Then a night in a downtown Chicago hotel that cost my mother almost as much as my plane ticket to Michigan. And a visit to the gift shop for a toothbrush, a t-shirt, some snacks, and a pair of new underwear. Then breakfast the next morning, where a simple 2 eggs over easy, a side of toast, fresh fruit, and bacon tallied up to $18...for one person. Then another outrageously priced taxi ride back to the airport where it was eerily quiet and the lines were not nearly as long or as abundant.

But don't let that fool ya...the line was waiting for us on the tarmac. 30 planes waiting, waiting, waiting to fly out and the line of storm clouds circled around us like a noose. And the lines they repeated over and over: "We're sorry for the delay..." "We're doing everything we can to ensure a safe flight..." "We so appreciate your patience..." "Well, we tried to get you out of here on time, but it looks like we'll be here for another 30 minutes..."

But it was 2 1/2 hours out on that overheated runway. Thus, the grimmace of impatience.

We missed our connection in Salt Lake, but our luck turned as Delta airlines rebooked us automatically onto the next flight out.

26 hours overdue we landed in Seattle, our luggage having arrived a day before us.

I'm home now and have more stories to tell. I learned a lot about myself on this trip even though I wasn't planning on such introspection. But those will have to wait until I unpack, do the laundry, play with the growing puppy, eat some "real" food, and rest my weary waiting bones.